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From: Guy Steele <gls@Think.COM>
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Date: Mon, 14 Sep 92 12:49:13 EDT
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To: jwagener@trc.amoco.com
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In-Reply-To: Jerrold L. Wagener's message of Fri, 4 Sep 92 18:44:56 CDT <9209042344.AA23637@trc.amoco.com>
Subject: (SC22WG5.203) a question of values
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   Date: Fri, 4 Sep 92 18:44:56 CDT
   From: Jerrold L. Wagener <jwagener@trc.amoco.com>
   ...
   So here's the question I get:  
   "Doesn't Fortran know about pi?" 
	   <<the premier scientific language of the 1990's, right?>>
	   <<even $20 calculators know pi out to 10 digits, right?>>

I can't resist commenting that programming language Common Lisp
(the subject of X3J13) *does* know about pi: the identifier PI
is required to have as its value the best possible approximation
to pi in the longest floating-point format supported by the
implementation.  (It is not without good reason that Common Lisp
is called a kitchen-sink language.)

Don't worry; I doubt Common Lisp is going to replace Fortran.

--Guy